But there's trouble brewing across the fruited plain. Activist judges and public school systems have declared a war on Christianity. The basic tenets of our faith are under attack. And it's pretty clear a majority of the country understands what's happening.
Rasmussen Reports released a poll showing 64 percent of Americans believe judges are anti-religious. Among evangelical Christians that number soars to 87 percent.2
"Legal scholars, religious leaders, and politicians have argued for decades over whether the 'separation of church and state' is actually enshrined in the Constitution," the report stated. "One side argues that the Constitution merely prohibits the establishment of a government-mandated official religion, but the other reads in the document the complete banishment of religion from anything touched by the government. The courts in recent years have leaned in the direction of the latter position."
The Rasmussen findings were released after a federal judge ruled the National Day of Prayer statute was unconstitutional. The Rasmussen poll also found that 46 percent believe the Supreme Court has been too hostile toward religion; only 13 percent said it has been too friendly toward religion.
As you've read in these pages, federal judges have also banned religious activities in school and even outlawed the playing of Christmas carols with religious lyrics.
In 2009 the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a kindergartner's mother could not read Scripture during show-and-tell at her child's school, even though it was the boy's favorite book.
In Marietta, Georgia, city officials considered changing the oath police officers take to remove the phrase "so help me God."
Perhaps one of the most disgusting anti-Christian rulings came from the courtroom of Judge M. Casey Rodgers. The Florida judge ruled the Santa Rosa School District was well within its rights to crack down on Christian teachers. The order prevents teachers from praying, reading their Bibles, or even responding to e-mail from parents that might include the words "God bless you."
During court testimony one teacher described how she was forced to hide behind a closet door to pray with a colleague whose two-year-old child had died.
Need more proof that Christianity is being marginalized and, in some cases, placed under outright attack? Just check out these dispatches:
Democrat Wants Capitol Prayers, Pastor Banned
A Minnesota lawmaker wants state senate leaders to order chaplains to keep their senate invocations nondenominational and refrain from overt mentions of Jesus, Christianity, or any other faith-specific references.
State Senator Terri Bonoff, who is Jewish, said she feels uncomfortable when ministers mention Jesus and Christianity during prayers.
The breaking point came when Dennis Campbell, the pastor of Granite City Baptist Church, offered a prayer that mentioned Jesus Christ three times. "And we pray, Lord, that you help us to show reverence to the Lord Jesus Christ and the word of God today," Campbell prayed.
After the prayer Bonoff rose to voice her objections. She also demanded he not be invited back. And now the Democratic lawmaker wants senate leaders to require chaplains to deliver nondenominational prayers.
"I'm a religious woman and believe deeply in God," Bonoff told Twincities.com. "We honor God in public and our political discourse, and that's proper. But in doing a nondenominational prayer we are honoring him without violating the separation of church and state."3
State Senator David Brown, who invited Pastor Campbell to the senate, defended the prayer. "If we're going to invite clergy to the Senate session to pray, we know they're coming from a denomination or a religion that represents a belief system," he said. "I believe we don't have the right to censor their prayers."
Child Banned from Passing Out Party Invitations
A Pennsylvania elementary school that prohibited a student from inviting classmates to a church Christmas party is now the focus of a discrimination lawsuit filed in federal court. The Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) filed the suit against the Pocono Mountain School District on behalf of a fifth-grade student. The student claims she was not allowed to pass out fliers inviting Barrett Elementary Center students to a party at her church.
District policies, according to ADF attorney David Cortman, prohibit any student speech promoting Christianity. "It's another example where schools need to be educated about the First Amendment," Cortman said. "The policies that are at the heart of this lawsuit are unconstitutional."
A spokesperson for the Pocono Mountain School District said they were not aware of the lawsuit and would be unable to comment on any pending litigation.
Cortman said the incident in question occurred when the child tried to distribute the fliers before class started. The twenty-eight-page lawsuit only identifies the student by her initials, "K.A." and refers to her as a Christian who "desires to share her religious views with her classmates."
According to the lawsuit, the church Christmas party was not overtly religious. It invited children to participate in "face painting, ping-pong, foosball," along with refreshments.
"The teacher said she needed to get permission from the principal, so she went to the principal, who then said she needed to get permission from the superintendent," Cortman said. "The superintendent denied her request."
Cortman said the irony is that students are allowed to distribute fliers and invitations for nonreligious events all the time. "Other students can hand out fliers for birthday parties, pizza parties, and Halloween parties," he said. "In this case, because it was religious, it was denied."
Fellowship of Christian Athletes Told to Take Down Religious Posters
A group of Christian athletes in Virginia is taking a stand against their high school after administrators tore down copies of the Ten Commandments posted on their lockers. Officials at Floyd County High School reportedly told the students only secular messages like "Happy Birthday" or "Go Team" are allowed on lockers.
The students are members of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. When the Ten Commandments were removed from their lockers, they contacted the Liberty Counsel, a legal firm promoting religious freedom.
"These acts of censorship violate the students' right to free speech," said Liberty Counsel founder Mathew Staver. "In this case the school has opened up student lockers for student expression and is monitoring and censoring religious speech."
Staver sent a letter to Barry Hollandsworth, principal of the high school, asking that the students be allowed to repost the Ten Commandments. The school did not return phone calls seeking comment.
In a rare turn of events, the Virginia chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union is also supporting the students. "Schools have the authority to ban all displays on school property," wrote ACLU of Virginia Executive Director Kent Willis in a press release. "But if a school allows students to post some kinds of personal messages on their lockers, it must also allow other kinds of messages, including those that have religious content."
Lawsuit Filed against Woman Who Wanted Christian Roommate
A civil rights complaint has been filed against a Grand Rapids woman who posted an advertisement at her church last July seeking a Christian roommate. "The statement expresses an illegal preference for a Christian roommate, thus excluding people of other faiths," according to the complaint filed by the Fair Housing Center of West Michigan.
"It's a violation to make, print or publish a discriminatory statement," Executive Director Nancy Haynes told FOX News. "There are no exemptions to that."4
Haynes said the unnamed thirty-one-year-old woman's alleged violation was turned over to the Michigan Department of Civil Rights. Depending on the outcome of her case, the Christian woman could face several hundreds of dollars in fines and "fair housing training so it doesn't happen again."
"This is outrageous," said attorney Joel Oster, with the Alliance Defense Fund. His organization is representing the
woman free of charge. "Clearly this woman has a right to pick and choose who she wants to live with." Oster said he's sent a letter to the state asking them to dismiss the case as groundless.
"Christians shouldn't live in fear of being punished by the government for being Christians," he said. "It is completely absurd to try to penalize a single Christian woman for privately seeking a Christian roommate at church, an obviously legal and constitutionally protected activity."
But Haynes said they plan on pursuing the matter. "We want to make sure it doesn't happen again," she said.
The person who filed the initial complaint apparently saw the ad on the church bulletin board. It included the words, "Christian roommate wanted" along with her contact information. Had the ad not included the word "Christian," she said it would not have been illegal.
"If you read it and you were not Christian, would you not feel welcome to rent there?" Haynes asked.
But isn't that the point?
And that, said Haynes, is discrimination.
Oster said he hopes the case will eventually be dropped. "The First Amendment guarantees us freedom of religion," he said. "And we have the right to live with someone of the same faith. The Michigan Department of Civil Rights is denying her rights by pursuing this complaint."
Catholic Professor Fired for Teaching Catholic Doctrine
A professor at the University of Illinois has been fired for teaching Catholic doctrine in a class about Catholic doctrine and was subsequently accused by a student of engaging in hate speech.
Dr. Ken Howell was on the faculty at the university for nine years. He was removed from the classroom after he told students he agreed with the Catholic Church's teaching that homosexual sex is immoral.
"The facts are quite simple," said attorney Travis Barham. "Dr. Howell has been relieved because he taught Catholic doctrine in a class about Catholic doctrine." Barham is with Alliance Defense Fund and will be representing the fired professor.
"As absurd as it sounds, those are the facts," Barham told FOX News Radio. "This should be disturbing not just for Catholics or Evangelicals but for everyone who cares about free speech."5
Barham said the university cannot censor a professor's speech just because someone finds it offensive. "It's profoundly disturbing. You have a professor who was removed from the classroom because someone found his speech offensive," Barham said.
Howell's firing has generated outrage on campus and among the nation's Catholics.
"Codes of academic freedom were written expressly to combat abuses like this, and that is why this case must be taken seriously," said Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League. "He was fired for his religious viewpoint, an unacceptable reason that will not stand up in court."
Pastor Fired as Chaplain for Jesus Prayer
A North Carolina pastor was relieved of his duties as an honorary chaplain of the state House of Representatives after he closed a prayer by invoking the name of Jesus.
Ron Baity, pastor of Berean Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, was invited to lead prayer in the legislative chamber for an entire week, but his tenure was cut short when he refused to remove the name of Jesus from his invocation.
Baity's troubles began when a house clerk asked to see his prayer. "The invocation included prayers for our military, state lawmakers, and a petition to God asking him to bless North Carolina.
"When I handed it to the lady, I watched her eyes, and they immediately went right to the bottom of the page and the word Jesus," he recalled. "She said, 'We would prefer that you not use the name Jesus. We have some people here that can be offended.'"
When Baity protested, the clerk brought the matter to the attention of House Speaker Joe Hackney. "I told her I was highly offended when she asked me not to pray in the name of Jesus because that does constitute my faith," Baity said. "My faith requires that I pray in His name. The Bible is clear."
When the clerk returned, Baity said he was told that he would be allowed to deliver the day's prayer, but after that his services would no longer be needed.
"When the state tells you how to pray, that you cannot use the name of Jesus, that's mandating a state religion," he said. "They talk about not offending other people but at the same time, if they are telling me how to pray, that's the thing our forefathers left England for."
The Christian Law Association helped Baity draft a letter asking for an apology and an opportunity to return to the state capitol and finish his tenure.
"The First Amendment promises all Americans the free exercise of their religion, which includes the right to pray as their faith requires, even when they are invited to open state legislative sessions with prayer,"6 attorney David Gibbs told WXII-TV. "We trust that the North Carolina House of Representatives will realize its mistake and will offer Pastor Baity another opportunity to pray without requiring him to use a prayer that is mandated by the government."
Baity said he is still stunned by what happened. "You would expect this somewhere else—Cuba, Saudi Arabia," he said. "You would never anticipate this happening in the United States of America." In a word, the pastor said, the decision is "anti-Christian."
In the Year of Our Lord—Unconstitutional
When high school seniors in New Haven, Connecticut, receive their diplomas this week, they will not be graduating "in the year of our Lord." The school district has removed the traditional phrase from high school diplomas after someone complained.
"It's a religious thing," Superintendent Reginald Mayo told the New Haven Register. "I'm surprised it took this long for someone to notice it. We certainly don't want to offend anyone."7
"This is political correctness gone mad," said Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League. "What this New Haven school is doing is more than a detour from our moorings; it is unconscionable. Attempts to scrub clean any reference to our founding is a disservice to the students and their community."
Last year former alderwoman Ina Silverman filed a complaint about "in the year of our Lord." Her daughter was a student at Wilbur Cross High School. According to the newspaper, she took her concerns to the mayor, who then asked the superintendent to censor the words.
Mayo told the newspaper it was a small but necessary change. The American Humanist Association heralded the decision.
"It removes the bias toward Christianity and puts all New Haven students on an equal plain without religious bias," said Bob Ritter, a staff lawyer with the American Humanist Association. "The fact of the matter is all New Haven students deserve a diploma which is religiously neutral. It favors no religion over another."
But some Christians disagree with that assessment. Local resident Betsy Claro called the decision "hideous."
"I do believe that it's a travesty to keep removing the Lord's name," the mother of three told me. "Our nation was founded on the principles of belief in God, and our founding fathers made sure it was incorporated into every document they produced."
It's not the first time the phrase has generated controversy. A Muslim student at Trinity University in San Antonio petitioned to have the words removed from diplomas. That university, affiliated with the Presbyterian Church of America, decided to keep the wording in place.
High School Ordered to End Pre-Game Prayers
A Wisconsin-based, freedom-from-religion group has accused a Tennessee high school of violating the civil rights of students by allowing someone to pray before Friday night football games. And now the Freedom from Religion Foundation is demanding Soddy-Daisy High School end the prayers or else. The group sent a letter to local school officials demanding an immediate end to the football prayers, as well as prayers delivered at the high school graduation ceremony.
"The prayers before the Soddy-Daisy High School football games constitute an unconstitutional government endorsement of religion," wrote attorney Rebecca Markert in a letter to Hamilton C
ounty School Superintendent Jim Scales. She called the prayers a "serious and flagrant violation of the First Amendment."
The Wisconsin group said they were representing "concerned" students. A spokesperson for the school system declined to comment because their attorney was out of town. Board of Education member Rhonda Thurman, however, told the Chattanooga Times Free Press the prayers were a longstanding tradition.8
She suggested people who didn't want to listen to the prayer should "put their fingers in their ears." Some local residents said they were offended by the accusations.
"I think Wisconsin ought to take care of Wisconsin," Rhonda Jewell told FOX. "We are in the Bible Belt. Prayer is an accepted practice, and they should just leave us alone."9
Parent Jim Rogers told the Chattanooga Times Free Press that he believes public prayer is a protected form of speech. "People who find Christianity contrary to their beliefs shouldn't be offended that [Christians] have the freedom to express their religious beliefs," he said.
The group has given the school system several weeks to respond to their letter. What happens if they don't is unclear.
Annie Laurie Gaylor, a copresident of the foundation, told the newspaper the school had "no leg to stand on."
"Students are a captive audience; they're required to go to school," she said. "When there is a violation like a prayer at a school, they're really vulnerable; it's a violation of their civil rights."
Punished for Talking about Jesus
A Wisconsin teenager was sent to the principal's office for talking about Jesus. Nathan De La Garza was having a conversation with another student about the Bible during free time at Park High School in Racine, Wisconsin. A teacher overheard him and told him he wasn't allowed to talk about religion. The following day Nathan was sent to the principal's office.
Dispatches from Bitter America: A Gun Toting, Chicken Eating Son of a Baptist's Culture War Stories Page 16